Heirzoom Popup at Reading Terminal Market

I first encountered Heirzoom's phenomenal fennome pastries at the West Chester Artisan

Exchange. Passed down through the generations, founder Diane Holtaway learned the Hungarian recipe from her aunt Betty. Crisp, buttery, and wonderfully light, these gustatory delights were one of the highlights of my trip to the Artisan Exchange. So when I heard that Diane was bringing Heirzoom to Reading Terminal Market in the form of a Sunday popup, I knew I had to stop by! 

Every Sunday from 9-5PM, Diane will be selling the pastries at RTM. She'll even show you how to make them! Each of these delicious bites are handmade - no two are exactly the same! It's a family-run operation, and when I stopped by this past Sunday, she was with her son highlighting their product to the crowds, right by the Metropolitan Bakery on the NE corner of the market. 

Heirzoom Fennome Three-Pack [$4]

Fennomes are inspired by the Hungarian term "finom." Meaning delicious, delicate, and tasty, it's wonderfully emblematic of each bite. Artisanally made with sweet cream butter, unbleached flour, and pure cane sugar, each fennome is filled with all-natural jams and fillings, including blueberry, strawberry, apricot, and raspberry. Treat yourself and obviously, they're perfect for gifting! 

Heirzoom Fennome Box [$12]

You can also get an entire box of these fennomes to share with the family or your co-workers. These can come decorated with chocolate, offering a nice richness to contrast with the sugary crystals studding the fennomes. Absolutely no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives!

So be sure to stop by on Sundays at RTM and stop by to try Diane's heirloom recipe. You won't be sorry. And if you can't make it on Sundays, stop by their website to get them shipped! 

Le Pain Quotidien: Callowhill Street Review

When Le Pain Quotidien opened up shop beneath the Granary Apartments, it was a nice surprise since I'm used to the bevy of LPQ's around NYC.

In addition to a soft opening provided for the residents, they brought out a sample of baked goods for us to try.

LPQ's baked goods are all organic and not overly done with butter, so they tasted fresh and were certainly filling. 

Properly enticed, the GF and I have been stopping by often for a quick snack or breakfast. An added bonus for Granary residents? We've got our own entrance!

Toasted Croissant [$6.95]
Paris ham, aged Gruyere, salad

Their toasted croissant breakfast features a crusty, buttery croissant, filled with fresh thick-sliced ham and aged Gruyere.

A nice mixed green salad with lemon vinaigrette comes on the side, replete with a few cornichon.

Croque Monsieur [$12.95]
 

Their croque monsieur was toasted a bit over, but was nicely buttery and filled with an abundance of ham and cheese. It was quite substantial, though at $13, might be a bit much. It came similarly adorned with a salad and some cornichon. 

Goat Cheese Omelette [$11.75]
 

For a goat cheese omelette, the price point was also a bit high. Still, this was perfectly cooked, with a well-seasoned pesto dressing the goat omelette.

The omelette came with fresh-baked sour dough and wheat bread, with a few pats of butter.

Prosciutto & Ricotta Tartine [$14.10]
Peach, arugula, organic olive oil, lemon

Do try the tartines for a burst of seasonal flavor. I would have preferred the bread to be toasted slightly for some texture. However, the peppery arugula balanced the salty prosciutto and the sweet peaches perfectly. The spritz of lemon helped to brighten up each bite, with a ricotta spread beneath to lend some creaminess. Nice.

So if you're in the Fairmount area (or by the Center city locations!), do stop by LPQ. You get what you pay for - organic, fresh, and delicious dishes that will give you the sustenance to get through the day.

Maison va Privat Review

This is for a series of posts related to a Paris 2014 trip including: 

 L’Arpège, Maison va Privat, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon: St. Germain, British Airways, First Hotel Paris, Maison Berthillon, La Carrousel de la Tour Eiffel, Brasserie de la Girandole, Royal Cambronne, Relais de l'Entrecote: Montparnasse, L'as Du Fallafel, Le Ronsard, and Rue Montorgueil Market.

Located on the same block as First Hotel Paris, the GF and I were looking forward to enjoying Parisian breakfasts on most days. There's not much better than having a croissant or baguette in hand, walking down the streets of Paris. 

Early in the morning, Maison va Privat was often busy with regulars. We were usually the only tourists in sight - a good sign!

The quality of their pastries were clearly on display, with a variety of options on offer.

Baguette 
 

On the way to Versailles, the GF and I decided to pick up a few goodies to munch on. The baguette was naturally great - fresh and crusty. As an American though, I couldn't help but long for a pat of butter or some jam. Womp womp.

Cranberry Financier 

On the other hand, there was plenty of sweet, rich, butter to be had in the cranberry financier. A gluttonous treat, the tartness of the cranberries helped to provide a countervailing element to each bite.

Eclair au Chocolat 

On another morning, we opted for a chocolate eclair. This had an interestingly chewy texture, with a chocolate cream within that was incredibly rich.

Orange Croissant 
 

If you're looking for some brightness, opt for one of the orange croissants, which were buttery, yet tart and sweet. 

Pain au Chocolat 
 

And of course, do get as many pain au chocolat's as you can. Essentially a buttery croissant, studded with nuggets of chocolate, this was definitely our favorite confection! 

So if you're staying in Paris, and certainly at First Hotel Paris, do find yourself a local patisserie such as Maison va Privat to stalk! 

Maison va Privat

7 Place Cambronne
Paris, France 75015

Potito's Bakery Review

Potito's is a South Philly bakery that specializes in some of the best Italian pastries and baked goods in the area. And based on Potito's current expansion, including a recently opened outpost in Fairmount, their award-winning cakes have been serving them well. In fact, if you follow them on Instagram you can see some of their gorgeous creations.

And in the spirit of celebrating Easter, who can say no to some baked goodies and red velvet cake?

Red Velvet Cake [$21.95]
7'' inch cake
 

Their red velvet cake was extremely moist, with the smooth and slightly tart cream cheese offering even more flavor. Definitely one of the better red velvet's I've had!

And we couldn't stop with just a cake. Some Italian pastries were needed as well including buttery almond and rainbow cake cookies.

So Happy Easter everyone and if you've still got a hankering for some sweets, be sure to stop by tomorrow for some treats - there's a good chance there will be a good deal! 

www.potitosbakery.com

Beiler's Bakery Review

This is for a series of posts for Reading Terminal Market including: The Rib Stand, Hatville Deli, By George! Pizza, Pasta & Cheesesteaks, Olympic Gyro, Iovine Brothers Produce, DiNic's Pork and Beef, Meltkraft, and Wursthaus Schmitz.           

Head to the Northwest corner of Reading Terminal Market and you will literally smell Beiler's Bakery, and their newly opened donut shop.

Their sticky buns, rolls, bagels, and cakes are made in-house - right in front of you!

And they're priced to sell! Especially if you consider their day old sticky buns - 6 for $2! And on Saturdays before closing? Pretty much everything is $2 or less since the Pennsylvania Dutch won't be back until the following week!

Sticky Buns ($2)

Just take a gander at those delicious buns. These emanate cinnamon and sugar, interspersed throughout the gluttonous roll.

Half Dozen Bagels ($3.99)

The bagels are fresh and thick - perfect to eat alone, or toasted with a bit of cream cheese.

So if you're by RTM, you'd be remiss if you didn't stop by this corner bakery, which produces delicious baked goods from the Pennsylvania Dutch! 

http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/merchants/view/2

Bread Top House Review

If you're looking for affordable, yet delicious baked goods, look no further than Chinatown. This section of Philly is home to numerous Chinese bakeries which offer the ubiquitous BBQ roast pork buns, among others. Bread Top House is one of the ones that gets it right.

Don't be alarmed by the Chinese lettering. Most items, if not all, are written in English as well.

Just grab a tong and get to picking and choosing between all the goodies. 

And talk about affordable! I got all of these for $5.55!

Egg Custard Tart 

The egg custard tart was interesting, the innards were subtly sweet with a crispy crust.

Curry Chicken Bun 
 

I've always enjoyed the curry buns at Korean bakeries like Koryodang which are admittedly infinitely better. But those outposts are limited to NY and NJ. The curry buns here are decent, with a small mix of onions, potatoes, and small bits of curried chicken amidst a soft bun.

Roast Pork Bun

But really, we're here for the sweet BBQ roast pork buns, which are good here. The roast pork isn't plentiful, but the mix of onions and sweet pork leave you wanting more. Guess the solution is to get two or three of these, especially at these cheap prices. I got two on this trip.

Raisin Twist
 

The dough on the raisin twist is subtly sweet and eggy, with nuggets of raisins interspersed throughout. 

Pineapple Custard Bun
 

The dough is airy and the pineapple custard is not overly saccharine. 

Sesame Red Bean Ball

The outside contains fragrant, toasted sesame seeds, the middle is glutinously delicious, and the innards consist of a sweet red bean paste. One of my favorites.

I still can't get over how cheap it was for all seven of these baked goods. If you're feeling adventurous and have a few dollars on hand, don't hesitate to step into Bread Top House to try some Chinese pastries. 

http://www.yelp.com/biz/bread-top-house-philadelphia